Perez to Rejoin Rotation

Odalis Perez will return to the starting rotation Wednesday against the New York Mets despite being less than dazzling since his demotion to the bullpen. The ineffectiveness of Jae Seo created a need, and Perez is the only candidate on the roster.

Seo lasted four innings Friday night in his second consecutive poor start, and is 2-3 with a 5.47 earned-run average this season. Perez has given up three earned runs in 7 2/3 innings in five relief appearances since his last start May 2.

Manager Grady Little made the decision while consulting with coaches during Seo’s abbreviated outing. One coach out of earshot was Dan Warthen, who was in the bullpen. Warthen was the pitching coach last season for triple-A Norfolk, where Seo spent much of the season before being traded from the New York Mets to the Dodgers.

“I thought he did more things correctly in that start than he had all season,” Warthen said. “But he’s getting the ball up more than I’ve ever seen him do. I’m sure he will be back to true form in a couple weeks.”

Perez, who is 4-1 with a 6.05 ERA, did not feel comfortable in the bullpen but tolerated it without going public with his misgivings.

“I knew I wasn’t going to be there forever,” he said. “I don’t have to be looking over my shoulder. I don’t have nothing against nobody here, and nobody has anything against me. I’m just going to pitch my best.”

Seo didn’t sound like he would cause any problems either.

“They gave me a lot of opportunities to start, and I didn’t have a good showing,” he said. “Hopefully I can work on some things and come back as a starter.”

Little said three days off in the next three weeks could enable him to skip or push back the No. 5 spot in the rotation more than once.

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Top prospect Chad Billingsley should fill any void in the rotation before long. First he must cut down on his pitch counts and change speeds more effectively. Bllingsley is 4-3 with a 4.22 ERA in 11 starts at triple-A Las Vegas, but he gave up 23 earned runs in 31 1/3 innings in May.

Jerry Royster, manager of the Las Vegas 51s, isn’t concerned by the slump.

“He’s got to get ready to pitch in the majors by trying different things, and he’s getting ready,” he told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “We want to see him induce contact a lot sooner. He tries to strike out too many guys, and he’s throwing too many pitches.”

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Pitcher Derek Lowe’s near pirouettes at the end of his delivery in the sixth inning Friday were the result of a round peg needing a round hole.

The peg would be his left heel, which oddly is the first part of his foot to land as he throws a pitch. The hole in the mound gets deeper as the game progresses and his heel continues to land in it.

But when his heel doesn’t hit the hole just right, he is thrown off balance and compensates by spinning nearly 180 degrees.

It looks funny, but it didn’t hurt Lowe’s effectiveness: He didn’t give up a run in six innings.

“I do slip a lot, and it’s because I land on my heel,” he said. “By the fifth or sixth inning, if I don’t land just right, it causes me to spin. I’ve always done that.”

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Catcher Dioner Navarro (bruised right wrist) wants to begin a minor league rehabilitation assignment next week and is waiting for a green light from the medical staff. The switch-hitter feels slight discomfort when he swings left-handed but has increased his swings in the batting cage from 25 to 50.